The Indo-Pak Club hosted their seventh annual charity dinner last Friday in Underwood Room and raised approximately $1500. The club held two separate sittings, one at 5:30 p.m. and the other at 7:30 p.m. The club plans on donating the proceeds from the dinner to Railway Children, an organization that gives aid to runaway and abandoned children living around railway stations all over the world. The group, in partnership with other organizations, provides shelter, health care, education, training and protection for these children. Mr. Rajesh Mundra and six Phillips Academy students plan on traveling to Mumbai, India this summer to work with the organization. Throughout the dinner, club members worked diligently both in the kitchen and among the diners to run a successful event. Hours before the event’s opening, students members of Indo-Pak transformed the Underwood Room into a decorative dining area. Colorful ornamental cloths, Pakistani and Indian flags, and pictures hung from the walls. There were stuffed Indian elephants dolls and rose-scented incense on tables lining the sides of the room. The dining tables themselves were covered in blue linen, sprinkled with confetti and adorned with Indian icons. Once the guests took their seats, students dressed in traditional Indian clothing appeared with water pitchers and began making their rounds at each table. The meal consisted of three courses: the appetizer, the main course and the dessert. Student waiters and waitresses first served pakora, an appetizer with spinach, onions, and other lentils mixed and fried in a batter, along with two different sauces. For the main course, vegetarians received a variety of entrees including mutter paneer, a mixture of gravy, peas and Indian cheese. Diners were also treated to aloo gobi, cauliflower and potatoes sautéed and cooked in mild spices and channa, split peas sautéed with onion, tomatoes, garlic, and cumin seeds. Non-vegetarians also enjoyed chicken tikka masala and butter chicken. Rice, naan, and raita, which is cool cucumber yogurt, complimented both the vegetarian and non-vegetarian meals. Finally, each diner was served mango ice cream for dessert. Club members, as well as other Phillips Academy students, families, and organizations, worked together to make the event possible. The students divided themselves into committees to maximize efficiency and later finalized their plans together. “Everything sort of came together,” said Co-Head Archie Rajender ’07. Bombay Club, an Indian restaurant located in Harvard Square, donated the chicken tikka masala for the dinner. Several students, both members and non-members of the Indo-Pak club, cooked various dishes on campus, while others donated several dishes for the dinner as well. “My goal was for a lot of people to get involved,” said the faculty advisor of the Indo-Pak Club, Rajesh Mundra. In reflection after the first sitting, Co-Head Abhishek Sripad ’07 said, “We were aiming for about 70 people. It surpassed my expectations…I’m really excited. I’m glad it was a good turnout, and I think it went pretty well.” Nadine Khan ’09, who helped set up the food in the kitchen, also expressed her happiness with the event’s success. She said, “I think it was pulled off perfectly.” According to Alexa Rahman ’08 and Blaine Johnson ’08, who helped serve at the dinner, one of the hardest tasks was to renounce the temptation to eat the food as they were serving. The diners themselves were impressed with not only the food, but the atmosphere and the service provided by their fellow schoolmates, who not only served the food but made sure that everyone had sufficient water and enjoyed their time. Alex Green ’07 said, “The food…[was] fantabulous, without a doubt. Pretty spectacularly amazing.” Bryce Frost ’08 said, “The atmosphere was very nice and the smell was very authentic.” “My favorite thing was the entertainment by our server,” said Adrienne Sabety ’07.
